TRAINING FOR RURAL GENERAL-PRACTICE

Objective: To identify requirements for vocational training and contin uing education programs in rural general practice. Design: A questionn aire was sent to all 487 rural doctors and 140 metropolitan and 140 pr ovincial city general practitioners (GPs) in Queensland. A sample of m edical educators, health professional and consumer representatives and rural doctors was also interviewed. Responses were compared by geogra phical area, practice characteristics and level of postgraduate traini ng. Results: There are significant differences between rural and urban practice profiles. Rural doctors have to practise a range of clinical skills in an environment with restricted access to health professiona l support, although the need for advanced training in procedural or ot her skills depends on the type of rural practise. Rural and urban doct ors want more influence in determining continuing medical education (C ME) programs. Interactive learning methods were rated as the most effe ctive education methods by both rural and urban GPs. Rural doctors wer e less likely to consider that they spent enough time on CME. Conclusi on: Vocational training programs should accommodate various rural care er objectives, including those requiring advanced levels of procedural work. There is a significant unmet demand for CME tailored to the nee ds of individual doctors, both rural and urban, but distance and isola tion may make this more critical in rural practice. These issues need to be addressed as training opportunities can contribute to improved r etention of the rural medical workforce.